DITSOBOTLA, North West — CoGTA Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa has reported encouraging progress within the Ditsobotla Local Municipality, marking one year of national government intervention aimed at resolving the North West region’s prolonged financial and operational instability. During a recent oversight visit, the Minister highlighted stabilized leadership and restored administrative systems, even as local concerns over service delivery remain a critical focus ahead of the upcoming November elections.
While the Minister pointed to administrative improvements, local councillors have expressed frustration, alleging that little tangible development has occurred over the past year. Some representatives have accused the national intervention team of sidelining them and failing to adequately respond to pressing issues affecting residents in their respective wards.
Addressing these contrasting views, Minister Hlabisa emphasized that the municipality now operates with a unified leadership structure, featuring a single mayor, speaker, Chief Financial Officer (CFO), and Municipal Manager. He noted that the previously chaotic administrative environment has been replaced by functional systems where organizational roles and reporting lines are clearly defined.
On the critical issue of water shortages, the Minister clarified that water service delivery falls under the jurisdiction of the district municipality, not the local sphere. However, he committed to urgently engaging district authorities to accelerate service delivery and ensure they are on-site to respond to community complaints. During a joint community visit in July with the Deputy President, the Minister confirmed that while some local boreholes are yielding water, service inconsistencies remain across different wards.
Regarding housing, Minister Hlabisa announced plans to liaise directly with the Department of Human Settlements to revive a stalled housing project that was previously halted by legal processes, facilitating its continuation for the benefit of residents.
The Minister also addressed critical financial bottlenecks, revealing that a crucial financial allocation earmarked for Ditsobotla is currently delayed until February of next year due to gazetting technicalities. He pledged to engage the Minister of Finance to fast-track these funds, warning that withholding resources would paralyze the municipality rather than enable it to deliver services. Additionally, engagements with the Department of Transport are underway to repair local roads through the Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) program, though he cautioned that the necessary tender adjudication process requires time to ensure proper execution.
With local government elections approaching on November 4, Minister Hlabisa issued a strong call to action for residents. He urged communities to be vigilant and carefully evaluate the capability of candidates on the electoral rolls, emphasizing that the responsibility of electing competent leaders who can deliver services from day one rests with the voters. He reminded current councillors that their contracts remain intact and they are expected to work diligently until the official election results are declared.
To assure residents that the municipality will not revert to dysfunction after the elections, the Minister confirmed that the national intervention is a two-year mandate. The intervention officially began on September 3, 2025, and is scheduled to conclude on September 3, 2027. This extended timeline is specifically designed to provide a stable foundation for the newly elected council.
Minister Hlabisa committed to returning immediately after the November elections to establish clear ground rules for cooperation with the new council. He affirmed that the intervention team will remain fully intact to support the new leadership, monitor progress, and prevent any disruption in service delivery, ensuring that the community finally experiences the functional local government they deserve.
